LA Galaxy

CARSON, Calif. – Marcelo Sarvas has been angling for goal during the last three weeks not only because he’s been eager to help the LA Galaxy offense, but also for personal reasons.

Two weeks ago, the Brazilian midfielder and his wife Camilla learned that the couple will be expecting their second child. Sarvas and his wife already have a son, Lucas who is a frequent sight on the sidelines at Galaxy matches.

During the Galaxy’s 2-0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps FC, Sarvas found the back of the net for the second time in the season. The goal was a mix of flair and luck on Sarvas’ part as the Brazilian dished a back heel pass to Robbie Keane who whiffed on a shot from close range that fell for Sarvas who punched it in.

“I’m not used to having the ball in that position and I’m blessed to get the chance,” said Sarvas who admitted that he was unaware that Keane had not intended to pass the ball to him. “I passed to him and when I turned, the ball was close to me and I was in front of goal. It was all very fast.”

With the goal scored, Sarvas completed the classic celebration of tucking the ball under his stomach and sucking his thumb in dedication to his future child.

“We proved [against Vancouver] that we have a good team but even good teams need to play with heart and soul,” said Sarvas. “When we stepped on the field today, everyone approached the game with the right mentality and when we do this, we’re a very good team.”

Landon Donovan has been named to MLSsoccer.com's Team of the Week after tallying two goals and an assist in the club's two win week.

Donovan notched the game-winner in the Galaxy's victories against the Colorado Rapids and Vancouver Whitecaps FC. The 32-year-old, who is retiring at the end of the season, has tallied six goals and eight assists this season.

In addition to Donovan being named to MLSsoccer.com's Team of the Week, Galaxy players Omar Gonzalez and Robbie Keane were each named to the squad's bench. Gonzalez ended the week with a goal and an assist while Keane tallied one goal and three assists in the two games.

ARENA: “I think we had a very good collective effort tonight. Players worked on both sides of the ball. It was a very good performance. Our backline played well but the six players in front of them did a really good job as well.”

(On the missed opportunities....)

ARENA: “I think it’s a very good win for our team. Thought it was a great team effort collectively on both sides of the ball. We could have gotten more goals but that is all part of the game. We are really pleased with the three points.”

(On getting goals early in the game...)

ARENA: “Good start to the game. Playing at home with a lead, we are generally a good team. It was obviously a great start to the game.”

(On the backline’s performance...)

ARENA: “They played well. They had a couple of chances at the end but I thought in general they played well. A couple of crosses in the second half were dangerous. Our guys did a good job clearing the ball and Jaime [Penedo] made a couple of good saves. Overall it was an improved performance.”

(On if the team is over the "hiccup" that they suffered against Columbus and Colorado...)

The active LA Galaxy midfielder will have his hands full on Saturday as he looks to contain Morales who is the focal point of the Whitecaps attack. Expect Sarvas -- and Juninho -- to put pressure on the playmaker to prevent him from enjoying the type of space that he needs to create chances for Vancouver.

ROBBIE KEANE vs. ANDY O'BRIEN

In this battle of Irishmen, Keane will seek to lure the physical O'Brien out of position and open up the Whitecaps defense for the likes of Gyasi Zardes and Landon Donovn.

WHAT THEY SAID:

“The Vancouver game is a six point game. When you play games at home, you have to get points. The way that the league is going, we might find ourselves at the top at the end [of the season] and that starts Saturday against the Whitecaps.” - Landon Donovan.

CARSON, Calif. -- The games keep coming for the LA Galaxy who take on Vancouver Whitecaps FC on Saturday in their third game in a week.

In the latest edition of LAGalaxy.com's "By the Numbers," we look at the Galaxy's home record against the Whitecaps. Currently, the Galaxy are undefeated against Vancouver at home with a 6-0-0 record (5-0-0 in the regular season) with an impressive 13 goals scored and two goals allowed.

COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – It was a true homecoming for Todd Dunivant on Wednesday when the LA Galaxy defeated the Colorado Rapids 4-3 in dramatic fashion.

Finally recovered after an abdominal tear that has sidelined him since the third game of the season, Dunivant returned to the Galaxy starting XI for the first time since April 6. In attendance to see the 32-year-old defender’s first start in months were nearly 90 members of the Colorado native’s family who were in town holding a family reunion.

What they saw, however, was less than positive –at least to start— as LA sputtered out of the gate conceding three goals in the opening 30 minutes of play to fall behind 3-1 at the half. During that slow start, Dunivant lacked sharpness as he was frequently targeted down the flank by Colorado.

“We didn’t come out strong enough. Who knows what it was? They got behind us too many times and they jumped on us,” Dunivant told LA Galaxy Insider. “We had our chances too, but we just weren’t ready.”

In the second half, the Galaxy appeared revitalized after a rousing halftime speech by head coach Bruce Arena. It didn’t take long for LA to pull level as goals from Omar Gonzalez and Alan Gordon tied up the score after just 68 minutes. In the 80th, Landon Donovan scored to seal the victory for the visitors.

For Dunivant who was lifted in favor of A.J. DeLaGarza just two minutes prior to Donovan’s game-winner, the win may come to define the Galaxy’s season.

“Sometimes these types of wins are more important than complete game performances because you need to dig deep and see what we’re made of,” said Dunivant, who claimed to be feeling no ill effects from his abdominal injury after the game. “We had a gut check moment at half time where a lot of words were said, but we were obviously able to come back.

“Playing in Colorado is always a tall task, but it was great to be back on the field and getting a win was fantastic for this team.”